Fireman&#39;s life-saving appliance.



No. s4|,375. v Paton-ted .lan. l6, I900. w. H. CORNELL.

FIREMANS LIFE SAVING APPLIANCE.

(Application filed Apr. 81, 1899.)

(No Model.)

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'WILLIAM H. CORNELL, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

FIREMANS LIFE-SAVING APPLIANCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 641,37 5, dated January 16, 1900.

Application filed April 21, 1899- Serial No. 713,914. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. CORNELL,

. of the city of New York, borough of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Firemans Life-Saving Appliance, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The purpose of this invention is to provide means for facilitating the saving of lives by firemen and other persons, which end I attain by constructing an appliance to be strapped to the fireman and capable of carrying the person to be rescued,- the device being so constructed that such person may be safely carried even though in an unconscious state.

This specification is the disclosure of one form of my invention, while the claims define the actual scope thereof.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in both views.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device, and Fig. 2 is a detail section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

The appliance has a main portion, preferably constructed of an integral length of bar metal, the middle portion of which is bent to form a saddle 3, on which a person is to be seated, and the end portions 4 of which are extended upward parallel with each other and rigidly joined at their upper ends by a cross-bar 5. This cross-bar projects beyond the respective side portions 4 and carries at each end a downwardly and rearwardly directed hook Q, such hooks being adapted to bear under the armpits of the person to be rescued, so that the person may be seated on the saddle 3 and held by the hooks 6 engaging under his arms. The arms 6 have rivets 6, that slide in slots 6 in the bar 5, thus permitting the hooks to be adjusted to suit the size of the person carried.

Now to to hold the person securely on the appliance, whether the person be conscious or unconscious, I provide a bow '7, constructed, preferably, of spring metal and of approximately semicircular form, the ends 8 of the bow being bent inward longitudinally with the cross-bar 5and being loosely carried in sleeves 9, (see Fig. 2,) which are fastened to the respective ends of the crossbar 5. By constructing the bow 7 of spring material and loosely fitting the ends 8 in the sleeves 9 it is possible to adjust the bow to persons of various sizes, the bow 7 serving always to fit snugly against the person irrespective of the size thereof. After a person is seated on the saddle 3'and the arms of the person held by thehooks 6 the bow 7 should be thrown downward over the back of the person, so'as to engage the shoulders of the person and hold them firmly in the hooks 6, thus preventing the person from falling.

For the'purpose of securing the appliance to the fireman or other person engaged in the work of rescue I provide two upwardly and forwardly projected hooks 10, rigidly fastened to the cross-bar 5, directly at the ends 4 of the main portion of the device. These hooks 10 are adapted to bear on the shoulders of the fireman, and, if desired, the appliance may be placed either at the back or front of the fireman. It is considered preferable to carry the appliance on the firemans back. For further securing the appliance in place I provide straps 11, which are fastened, respectively, to the portions of the main part of the appliance, and one of which is provided with a buckle 12, adapted to engage the other strap, so that the appliance may be readily strapped securely on the fireman.

It is also possible to use my invention at the end of a line for lowering persons from the Windows of a burning building instead of carrying them down on the back of the fireman. This is done through the medium of a bail 14, with an eye 15 at its upper portion, to which a line may be bent. This bail is fastened to the cross-bar 5, with its ends respectively adjacent to the hooks 10, the bail projecting upwardly from the cross-bar, as shown in Fig. 1.

Various changes in the form, proportions, and minor details of my invention may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Hence I consider myself entitled to all such variations as may lie within the scope of my claims.

Having thus described my invention, 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. In a life-saving appliance, the combination of a main portion comprising a saddle and upwardly-extended parts leading from the saddle, a cross-bar attached to said parts, hooks carried by the cross-bar for receiving the arms of the person to be rescued, a bow mounted to swing on the cross-bar to hold the person in place, and means for attaching the appliance to the back of the user.

2. In a life-saving appliance, the combination of a main portion having a saddle and having upwardly-extended parts leading from the saddle, a cross-barto which said parts are attached, hooks carried by the cross-bar and projecting rearwardly to carry the arms of the person to be rescued, a bow mounted on the cross-bar and adapted to swing back of the said person to hold the person in place, additional hooks projecting forwardly and adapted to be engaged with the users shoulders, and straps attached to said upwardlyextended parts and adapted to fasten on the user. I

3. A lifesaving appliance, having a saddle on which a person is to be seated, hooks adapted to engage the arms of the person to be rescued, and a bow mounted to swing on the appliance and capable of extending over the body, to hold the person in place.

45. A life-saving appliance, having a main portion, hooks supported thereon and adapted to carry the arms of the person to be saved,

and a bow mounted to swing on the appliance andto embrace the body to hold the person in place.

5. A life-saving appliance, having means for attaching it to the person of the user, a saddle for carrying the person to be saved, hooks for engaging the arms of said person, and a bow mounted to swing on the appliance and to engage the person to be saved to hold the same.

6. A life-saving appliance, having means" ing means for attaching it to the fireman, such means comprising a strip adapted to encircle the body of the fireman, and means for securing the person to be saved to the appliance, so that such person may be carried bodily by the fireman.

WILLIAM II. CORNELL iVitnesses:

HERMAN GUSTOW, EDWD. R. VOLLMER. 

